ESPN X Games celebrate 10 years

The event will be televised live on ESPN and ABC for the first time.
By MIKE BRUDENELL
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
Dudes, ESPN's X Games are upon us. For any self-respecting thrill-seeker, that means four days of radical sports, including in-line skating, moto X, skateboarding, surfing and wakeboarding.
The X Games, which are celebrating their 10th anniversary, will take place for the most part in and around Los Angeles, including Huntington Beach Pier and Long Beach Marine Stadium.
The world-class Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif., will serve as the X Games' newest venue and host moto X freestyle, moto X supermoto and bike stunt dirt competitions.
For the first time in summer X Games history, the event will be televised live on ESPN and ABC, Thursday through Sunday. "SportsCenter" also will report live from the games, with Linda Cohn hosting the show.
The Staples Center in L.A. will host much of the competition, including skateboarding, bike stunt and moto X.
New category
Big Air has been made part of the X Games skateboard category for the first time. Skateboard big air consists of a jump that involves a 60- to 80-foot takeoff ramp, followed by a gap jump, landing and quarter-pipe at the bottom.
Now if you don't think that's way cool, you're obviously out of touch, buddy.
X Games X will feature 14 hours of programming on ESPN and ABC. In addition, ESPN2 will present daily late-night highlights.
ESPN debuted its X Games franchise in 1995. This year, the X Games will feature a finals-only format consisting of the 10 best action sports athletes per discipline. The only sports that will have more than 10 competing athletes will be moto X supermoto and surfing.
If you prefer your sports wild, X Games X is your bag.